"Six Word Saturday..."

Monsoonal conflict...

churning and bubbling within.

See other Six Word Saturdays here...:)

"Celebration...X's Three...!"

Special birthday wishes are sent with love today

to three lovely summer blossoms:

Our twin nieces...Joya and Jillian...age 8...

and Scott's granddaughter...

Lexi...age 7.

What a sweet little trio...Hugs and kisses girls!

XOXOXO

♥

"Blooming Batiks..."

...for day wear...
...or a night time rendezvous...:)
Happy Blooming Tuesday!

"Have it YOUR Way...:)..."

...A Stylized Cactus Flower...

all dressed up in fancy tooled leather-

perfect for a night "out on the town" boot skootin'...

♥

...or, the same flower

all dressed down...in comfy threadbare denim-

just right for a lazy summer day at home.

♥

Which ever suits your fancy...

have a super great "dressed up or down"

Cactus Monday y'all!

;)

"Six Word Saturday..."

"Monsoonal Palette"

...such artistically Divine brushstrokes!

See other "Six Word Saturdays" HERE...:)

"Thursday Already?...More Mail Art!..."

...I begin today with a "Zinnia and Fern" from

Carolyn in Wisconsin...
...then, from Maria Clara in Spain
comes this black and white zentangle garden...
...from Sher-Minn in Malaysia
comes these three custom beauties..each featuring
"water blossoms"...
the first two forming a diptych.
(This is the second set made for me as the first set
was lost in the mail...
an enormously heartbreaking risk of trading art.)
...from Melody in Utah
comes a "Uni Corn"...in a wonderfully layered collage.

...from Anne in England...

a young girl with wings...and a smashing yellow collage

complete with a foreign postage stamp.

...and, lastly, from Erika in Canada...

a magnificent magnolia...she even sent along

the reference photo

she took of the flower just for fun!

(Be sure to click on any of these images to enlarge...

the details in these cards

are amazing!)

Indeed...

beautiful art from art filled spirits has once again

graced my desert mailbox.

I am truly thankful for the joy and smiles

each piece brings.

I am truly thankful also for each

and every one of

your continued individual blog visits...

whether they be regularly on a daily basis

or sporadic...

as time allows...the occasional "pop-in"

just to see "what's up".

It brings me such great joy

(and many smiles)

to belong to such a wonderful blogging community

of art enthusiasts!

For all this I am most thankful!

"Off to Canada Now, eh?..."

Yep!

These seven little art pieces...

as of Saturday..

have flown with the wind to Canada

as my contribution to the

August 2010

Ink and Watercolor Swap at Illustrated ATCs.

I will be sure to post my returns...

Can't wait! :)

"To stay ahead,

you must have your next idea waiting in the wings."
~Rosabeth Moss Kanter

"A Bloomin' Heart..."

...for a "Happy Bloomin' Tuesday"!

“To hide the key to your heart
is to risk forgetting where you placed it.”
~Timothy Childers

"Just Chillin'..."

...and hoping that looking at this might cool me down.

Dang! It's HOT!!!

...115 degrees high here this past week...

...WITH humidity...

(cuz it's our so called "moonsoon" season now.)

Have a cool and refreshing

Cactus Monday all!

:)

PHOTO SOURCE: azcentral.com

“What dreadful hot weather we have!

It keeps me

in a continual state of inelegance”
~Jane Austen

(British Novelist and Writer, 1775-1817)

"An Abundance of Artistic Mail..."

...Two soulful collages of beautiful elegant women

from Anne in England...

(And, as always, click on any image to enlarge

to see details...)

...Some lovely layered stamping and watercolor

from Karen in Indiana...

...A spectacular custom made geisha card

from Lori in Illinois...
...Two fabulous ladies one mysterious...one magical...
from Margaret in South Africa...
...more geisha ladies for my growing Asian collection
from Janet in Texas...
...two spectacular zentangles and two watercolor batiks
from Cindy Michele in Tennessee...

...A sparkly zen and a lofty mountain view with

a cool stitched border

from Veronica in Colorado...

...Multi layers of loveliness

using collage and illustration in two cards from

Amy in Wisconsin...

...A funky cool pink lady

(who actually reminds me of one of my neices)

from Lindsay in the U.K.......An perky origami grasshopper perched on bamboo

from Carey in California...

...Three rich Oriental collages from Marianne in Denmark...

And lastly...two delightfully sweet little collages

from Cheryl in Utah...:)

My! Oooooh MY!

I am so thankful for the beauty and the friendships

that art has brought into my life...

Each and every one of these artists

has a whole treasure trove of goodies awaiting

your perusal

by a mere click of your mouse.

I hope you have the time...if not I hope you have

enjoyed what has been posted.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit today...

Big smiles from me!! :)

I leave you with my favorite quotation,

which especially lately,

has proven to be my mantra:

♥
“Art washes away from the soul

the dust

of everyday life.”
~Pablo Picasso

"Heartfelt Words..."

“Breathe.

Let go.

And remind yourself

that this very moment is the only one

you know you have for sure.”
~Oprah Winfrey

"Midwest Blooming..."

There is something to be said about

experiencing

the change of seasons in the Midwest...

especially

when coming from a hot, dry,

summer-browned desert.

The vegetation we saw in Illinois these past weeks

was so dense and lush and vibrant

it actually hurt my eyes!

(Go figure...I think I must be color deprived!)

The corn...which traditionally they say is to be

"knee high by the 4th of July"...

rose in thick, proud, untassled rows

and

stood shoulder to head high

turning

gravel country roads into canyons rimmed

with nature's emerald bounty.

Actually, the fields

were so incredibly deep, deep green

my brother-in-law claimed they were almost blue!!!

No kidding...!

Wildflowers were blooming almost everywhere

they could take root.

Queen Anne's Lace held royal court

over clusters of sky blue chickory and thistles....

painting weedy roadside ditches

in colorful soft washes of floral beauty.

Mmmm...really nice.

Soooo...

inspired by all this bountiful blossoming

I have started

a series of summery floral heart ATCs.

My first one here is

inspired by the sturdy and joyful coneflower.

I post it today

in celebration of two birthdays

in my family...

my brother Mark in Illinois...

and my sister Susan here in Arizona...

both were born this very day

exactly

two years apart!

(They still claim to this day that they are twins.)

HAPPIEST of BIRTHDAYS

TO YOU BOTH!!!

May your day bloom with love and joy

and your hearts be

filled with sweet and special

memories.

♥

"Agave and Friends..."

We are back home now...

adjusting to

the "new normal" that invariably follows

tragedy and loss.

Scott and I want thank each of you

for your prayers, cards, comments, and emails

of sympathy and condolence

regarding the passing of his father

"Ollie."

Your words and thoughts lighten our hearts.

Ollie, who was an artist and woodcrafter,

loved to watch me draw

especially during these last months.

As I look through my sketchbooks

filled with the many sketches I have yet to paint

fond memories

of him and our visits flood my mind.

At some point, when I feel ready, I will finish them...

and post them for you to see.

For now though...

I will keep them tucked away...

and

attempt to slowly work back into the

blogging universe

where

all of you wonderful artistic friends

make my spirit soar.

Happy Cactus Monday...Cherish the day...:)

"Today a new sun rises for me;

everything lives,

everything is animated,

everything seems to speak to me of my passion,

everything invites me to cherish it.”
~Ninon de Lenclos

"Ollie and Me...May 2010..."

Orville Krahenbuhl 1917-2010

Orville "Ollie" Krahenbuhl, 92, of DeKalb, Ill.,

passed away Wednesday, June 23, 2010,

at DeKalb County Rehab & Nursing Center, DeKalb.

He was born July 8, 1917,

on a farm near Bristol, Ill.,

the eldest son

of John and Gertrude (Gittleson) Krahenbuhl.

He married his college sweetheart, Lillian,

on Sept. 19, 1942,

at Calvary Lutheran Church in rural Lee.

They were married for almost 65 years

before her death in 2007.

Ollie was a graduate of Rochelle High School, Class of 1937.

He also was a graduate

of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.

Ollie, a three-sport star for Northern Illinois

from 1937-41

who was inducted into the NIU Athletics Hall of Fame

in 1985.

Krahenbuhl earned 11 letters in football,

men's basketball and baseball for the Huskies,

playing for

legendary Huskies' football head coach

George "Chick" Evans.

A fullback and punter for the

Northern Illinois football team,

Krahenbuhl was named

to the "Next 100" of the Huskies' All-Century Team.

He was a first team Little 19 Conference fullback

in 1938 and 1940,

helping the 1938 squad to its first Little 19 Conference title.

Krahenbuhl still owns

two of the longest punts in Northern Illinois history

as his 90-yard boot versus Illinois State

in the game that would decide the Little 19 title

stands as the second-longest punt in school history.

His punting was said to be a key factor

in the Huskies' 2-0 victory that day.

He added an 80-yard punt versus Central Michigan

in 1940

which ranks third on the all-time list.
The four Huskie football teams Krahenbuhl played on

posted a combined record of 20-8-5

and

never had a losing season.
"Ollie Krahenbuhl is the greatest punter I ever saw,"

Evans told the DeKalb Daily Chronicle

in 1968.
Krahenbuhl also earned

a Little 19 Conference Championship

on the basketball court as a member of the 1940-41

Huskie hoops team

under head coach Ralph McKinzie.

That squad won the league crown

with a 15-3 record

with Krahenbuhl serving as the team's co-captain.

In his three years as a basketball letter winner,

his NIU teams never had a losing season.

The 6-0 guard was named to

Northern Illinois' All-Century Basketball Team

in 2001.
Krahenbuhl was also a four-year letter winner

in baseball from 1938-41,

with the team's most successful season

during his tenure in 1940 with a 14-12 record.
Ollie served in the Navy and the Army in WW II.

Following the war,

he returned to the area and served as athletic director

and coached four varsity sports

at Harlem High School in Rockford

and was a coach and teacher at

Shabbona High and Malta High Schools

while also running his family farm

near Lee and Steward, Illinois.

An avid golfer,

he was a longtime member of Kishwaukee Country Club,

as well as the

American Legion and Rotary International.
He was a longtime member of Calvary Lutheran Church,

teaching Sunday School,

holding a position on its Administrative Board

and serving for many years as an usher.

He and his wife, Lillian,

traveled widely around the United States,

often on visits to or for activities involving their children and grandchildren.

They spent their winters in Arizona from 1981-2001.

He is survived by his five children,

Gary (Richey) Krahenbuhl of Tempe, Ariz.,

James (Jean) Krahenbuhl of Earp, Calif.,

Scott (Peg) Krahenbuhl of Surprise, Ariz.,

Debra (Jan) Hueber of Steward and

Doug (Sue) Krahenbuhl of Steamboat Springs, Colo.;

15 grandchildren;

16 great-grandchildren;

and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Lillian;

his parents;

and his brother, Eugene.

♥

An emergency flight to Illinois the evening of

June 22nd

landed us well after midnight

but

enabled us to see Ollie and be with him

in his last hours.

We felt very, very blessed.

♥

Yesterday would have been Ollie's

93rd birthday.

We celebrated it with smiles and tears of joy

but also

with a big hole in our hearts.

I absolutely know he was smiling down on us

"with love from above".

♥
"Perhaps they are not stars,

but rather openings in heaven where the love

of our lost ones

pours through and shines down upon us

to let us know they are happy."
~Eskimo Proverb